The present invention relates to a liquid pump for pumping a liquid from a low elevation to a higher elevation. The invention is particularly useful when constructed as a nebulizer for nebulizing or atomizing a liquid, and is therefore described below with respect to this application.
Nebulizers are widely used in medical applications, particularly as inhalators for inhaling vapours which may include a drug. However, for most effective inhalation, the vapour (with or without the drug) must be atomized into very fine droplets of a few microns in diameter. The nebulizers now commonly used for such medical applications are generally based on atomizing the liquid by an ultrasonic device or by a device which produces a high velocity flow across or through a nozzle. However, such known nebulizers are generally expensive to produce and bulky to carry.